Martin Johnson will always be an England hero - but it is time to turn to someone like Jim Mallinder

It was almost eight years ago to the day that Martin Johnson was being feted
as a hero in these parts. On Wednesday he departed Twickenham a sadder soul,
weighed down by the burden of failure that was England’s World Cup campaign.
Sport’s wheel of fortune spares no man.

Yet you could not help feel that he will forever hold a place in the public’s affections. That much was evident in the tense surrounds of the ‘Spirit of Rugby,’ the very room in which Sir Clive Woodward had left centre stage in 2004 at a volatile final press conference.

Johnson did not point fingers, nor seek to hide behind the failings of others. He was honest, heartfelt and revealing in a Johnson sort of way. He doesn’t do touchy-feely but he did let us in behind the mask, only for a few moments, but it was clear just how much the decision had tormented him.

Alongside sat RFU’s elite rugby director Rob Andrew, defiant, refusing to acknowledge any errors on his part. It wasn’t difficult to see which of the two is held in the greater esteem by the wider world. And why.

Johnson’s vulnerability was always going to be his lack of hands-on coaching experience. It came back to haunt him. He was charged with knocking England into shape on all fronts, sorting out the environment, getting everyone on-message. When England stumbled, as they did in terms of their discipline, he had to be the fall-guy.

He would not have wanted it any other way. This time the RFU should focus on getting a man fit for the precise purpose, and that means a head coach.

They don’t necessarily need a star name, a Graham Henry or a Nick Mallett, but they do need someone in a tracksuit, a hands-on practitioner, someone at ease with a clipboard in hand and whistle in mouth. Northampton’s Jim Mallinder certainly fits the bill. And he’s English.

The hope was that Johnson would grow into the role, apply his formidable rugby intellect to the task, and flourish accordingly.

Johnson did enjoy success, so let’s not damn him on all counts as he heads towards the exit. England have won ten of their last 13 matches. They did win their first Six Nations titles in eight years.

The success rate of the team over the last year is at 77 per cent, second only to the All Blacks. Stats will tell you part of the story. Perception may be a more subjective yardstick but it too is valid. On the basis of their World Cup campaign, England were craven, shoddy and at odds with one another.

There is no template for all this. But there needs to be clarity. There most certainly needs to be consistency in selection. Pairing Jonny Wilkinson and Toby Flood in the quarter-final was a blooper.

There were signs of a new England emerging in the months leading up to the World Cup. In New Zealand it disappeared into a morass. And Johnson has paid the price.